Eyes of the Beholder
by E3-FantasyandReality
Summary: Power, when utilized to the fullest, can grant many possibilities unbeknownst to man. He has already defied the laws of time to save the world. All that's left is to alter fate to forge a peaceful future. By denying his comrades of his true past, he hopes to present them a better tomorrow. Stronger!Kakashi [Time-travel!fic]
1. To Bring Back Time

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto in any shape or form.

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**Prologue: To Bring back Time**

It was over.

The die was cast when humanity's only hope withered away, as if he wasn't anything significant. Uzumaki Naruto, the flamboyant boy who held so much pride within him, had the Kyūbi extracted from his body. It didn't matter how formidable the Fourth was with seals, it couldn't restrict the vexed Nine Tails in its confinement any longer.

The Allied Shinobi had lost.

Everything had become hopeless.

Hundreds of thousands had fallen prey to the two _infamous _Uchiha. No one survived: they all perished under the wrath of the Uchiha duo. Corpses littered across the battlefield along with hundreds of titanic craters that scattered throughout the wasteland, forcing the geographic landscape near the Land of Fire to reshape.

What had gone wrong? What miscalculation had they made? Were they too naïve to overlook the circumstances when Madara waged war against them?

It didn't matter now. No one can save the world from its inevitable end. Madara and Obito had prevailed, with the sun just over the horizon. It's as if the universe was rejoicing over the matter. Golden rays of light shone behind Madara, highlighting him as the omnipotent one, as he stood on top of a miniature mountain of lifeless bodies, with his hand firmly on his hip.

His keen obsidian orbs scanned across the desolated area he had destroyed and redefined with his own two hands. Everyone was dead, or dying, and Madara was content with that. However - '_That chakra... hm, _he's_ still alive.'_

Not too long after, he was accompanied by his sole comrade, the man who helped with his conspiracy and his long desired wish: _Tsuki no Me Keikaku. _Obito Uchiha - once a Leaf Genin, and now an S class criminal - jumped to his stead, focused and tensed.

"So you've sensed it too," Madara quickly glanced at Obito. The man looked disturbed, unsettled and wary. He couldn't blame him, _his _presence still remained to lurk someplace else, not too far from their location. "Well, aren't you going to finish _him _off?"

The younger Uchiha glared at his mentor who couldn't quite conceal his mirth. With a nod, and absolute resolve, Obito disappeared in thin air.

_**~O~O~**_

The lone silver-haired Jōnin was down on his knees; head up high to the unforgiving heavens; left hand bitterly balled into a fist; lips parted as if he wanted to speak.

His sharingan scanned around idly, failing to register anyone's chakra. He knew he wasn't the only one alive, but he couldn't sense nor whiff out anyone else's presence. And he also speculated that if there were any survivors they weren't exactly _friendly._

_We lost, huh?_

Thick grey smoke lingered around Kakashi like dancers gracefully dancing on stage. However, it wasn't as gracious as it appeared to be in the atmosphere. The Jōnin felt suffocated, the smoke clogged up his throat and cemented in his lungs like tar. The dirt which spun around with the wind approached Kakashi at a harsh pace, and the tiny bits which found its way on Kakashi's eye stung like thorns prickling into exposed flesh.

It no longer mattered to the Jōnin, though, he could barely feel anything anymore.

Kakashi's left hearing was permanently damaged; his right onyx eye was crushed; his right arm was twisted until it snapped. He remained knelt down as if he was asking for forgiveness for his failure, but in truth he couldn't move anymore. His body was conquered by fear and his Will of Fire had burnt out.

Another war led him to another excruciatingly painful failure. What has he done these past few years? Didn't he try to make things right again, with his new squad? Oh yeah. He failed them as well.

No matter how much he wanted to wail and spit profanity out, he was subdued by the travesty of war and by Madara's ominous presence spewing all over the area. Kakashi knew Madara was _more_ than exceptional, but he didn't anticipate that the result of this war would be against their favor. Numbers _should_ have outweighed Madara's fighting prowess and visual techniques but, instead, it heightened his eager to fight _more._

The Gokage fell disgracefully against Madara; it was such a distasteful sight. It was as if they had obediently bowed down at his feet and worshiped, acknowledged, him as _God._

The next to fall were the Shinobi Alliance. Without their leaders they couldn't find strength within them; their purpose to serve and protect were ripped out by Madara.

After Madara's onslaught only _one _person remained in the Alliance. The man who had many regrets since adolescence. The man who faltered when his students needed him the most. Out of all the courageous people in the Alliance, Kami picked _him_ to live.

Due to the prolonged days of war; Kakashi was no longer garbed in the usual Leaf Shinobi attire - it had tattered in the midst of war. Instead he was left with nothing but his fishnet shirt that clung onto his masculine body in vain, and sagged navy pants that could tear off any minute. The mask had been long gone too - he didn't realize it until now.

_What can he do?_

Nothing.

Kakashi could no longer see the meaning, nor the will, to live and cling desperately on for his whimsical existence. Even if he _did_ survive, what could he possibly do?

_Nothing!_

Even with the different methods he concocted in his mind upon tackling the current situation, there was only one - inevitable - outcome: hopelessness. Kakashi knew he had been naïve throughout this entire time - depending solely on Naruto to fight against forces of evil. Yet he was too blind to see it.

"What a suiting stance for trash like you." A coarse voice vibrated through Kakashi's flesh. He didn't dare to turn to his side to meet Obito's weary mismatched eyes. "Can't trashes like you turn to look at me?"

Surreptitiously, Kakashi's only functioning eye quickly glanced at Obito, he stood a good six feet away from him. Neither uttered another sentence, their eye communicated in a manner that they could _almost_ interpret each other's thoughts. "You don't want to do this," Kakashi murmured under his breath, averting his eye away from him.

"And what makes you think that?"

It couldn't be helped he needed - he _wanted_ \- to face his former comrade and look into his eyes. Guilt swarmed back into his conscience when he saw Obito stood stagnant just a few feet from him. Although Obito had won the war he still wore a solemn face that didn't show any triumphant signs, just more sorrow.

Kakashi licked his chapped lips as he tried to suppress his poignant regrets accumulating at the back of his mind. Then he spoke, slow and forced: "_Rin_ wouldn't want to see you like this."

"How could _you_ possibly know what _Rin _would have wanted?!" Obito barked uncontrollably. "Mission or fault, _you _killed _her!_ You broke your promise!" He stomped towards the helpless Jōnin and grabbed his thin fabric fishnet shirt, then he yanked him closer to his face. "I am doing more for her. You-you-"

"...Should die?" Kakashi finished, unfazed by the overwhelming anger accumulating within Obito. "I can't say I don't agree with that, but-"

Obito's iron clad grip tightened as he pulled him closer. The pungent scent of blood on their clothes assaulted their nostrils relentlessly. The blood still smelt fresh on their clothes with a hint of burnt ashes. Although Obito and Kakashi had familiarized themselves with blood; the potent mixture of salt and iron, ash and sweat that lingered around them, still struck sharply into their senses.

"What?" Obito sharply whispered, clutching harder onto his shirt.

"Do _you_ really think Rin would want to see you, after _you_ killed _thousands_ of people?" Kakashi asked as he daringly stared into Obito's eyes. The vulnerability inside Obito was still present, Kakashi could sense it. "...It would seem you've reached an impasse, Obito."

The young Uchiha's stoic face fell at a rapid rate, his concealed emotions he held inside him, in vain, leaked out. "...Rin, wouldn't want this?"

"It's ironic in a sense," Kakashi mused out loud, avoiding Obito's question. "You wanted to protect everyone from harm's way. But in the end, _you're_ the one who inflicted the damage."

"Shut up!" Obito roared. It was as if Kakashi had slapped him into realization. The bitterness welling up at the tip of his tongue felt vile, and so he resorted to biting his bottom lip to suppress his guilt. "Don't dare account the things in the past!"

Kakashi's only functioning arm rose from his side and gripped Obito's wrist, then he pushed him away from him. "Isn't that what _you're_ doing?" he grunted as his knees fell onto the rough surface. "You can't live away from the past - so you resulted to Madara's devious plans."

Obito closed his eyes shut, trying to drown out Kakashi's voice because he knew he spoke the truth. He wanted to burst and release his final wrath on his former comrade but he was reluctant. His will restrained his fury and aided him to listen, listen more attentively, without the influence of his budding anger feeding him to become a prejudice.

The weather had calm down after the rough night of fighting. The skies were still quite grey but it was beginning to lighten up to a light blue hue with hints of white clouds. Wind currents have died as well, everything seemed to have stood still.

"You were the vaunted Black Sheep of the Uchiha!" Kakashi had finally burst, his voice seemed stronger but strained. "Why didn't you come back to the village, Obito!?"

"Sh-"

"You were running away from Rin!" the sentence sliced through Obito like a sharp knife through butter. "You couldn't face her! The truth can _never_ be altered, Obito! She died in the Third Shinobi War to protect the village we love!"

The Jōnin couldn't be calm anymore, he couldn't just wilt back onto the ground again. He needed to at least _try, _for the last time, to reach to out to Obito. Even if it was the last thing he could ever do. He gritted his teeth together as he used his hand to push himself up again, the muscles in his thighs gripped together and twisted in pain but Kakashi wasn't going to make allowances. He refused to acknowledge the pain in his legs, and without acknowledgement his legs will _not_ betray him.

"I tried to reason with you, Obito. All because of Rin and our time together as Team Minato!" Kakashi's calm face seemingly disrupted and contorted in anger. For the first time Obito saw his rage seep out.

Kakashi needed to vent his frustration out and hopefully shatter his former comrade out from his turmoil. He couldn't just watch Obito take his life away without trying to accomplish something.

_"You just made Rin's death in vain!"_ The silver-haired Jōnin vociferated, knuckles white as snow, with his hand curled into a fist. "_You-!_"

The sentence made an abrupt halt when Kakashi's fist connected to Obtio's left cheek. The power that ignited Kakashi's fist was his last drop of strength. The punch was vehemently strong it made Obito stumble backwards, in a dazed state.

"..You killed the one thing she loved the most - her village!"

The pain throbbing in Obito's cheek became numb; his heart felt heavy, like his diaphragm had started to contract harder than usual as his ribcage strangled his heart. "Stop-"

"Yes, _stop_ this pitiful sight already." Madara deadpanned.

_**~O~O~**_

The Uchiha stood quite a distance from the two. Sadly the distance that made Kakashi feel at ease was soon closed when Madara catapulted himself next to Obito. Kakashi's eye tightened as fragments of broken stones were fired directly at him - his arm up in defense wasn't much help at all.

"I guess it_ is_ true," Madara sneered with mockery at the sole survivor. "The weak _are_ the last to die; you've just proven my theory right."

"Madara, what are you doing here?" Obito questioned sharply, glaring at him without hesitation. "_I'm_ the one who shall handle this."

Kakashi tried to remain stood but, despite his desperation, his knees and the muscles that were tensed became weak. '_Shit!' _Gravity pulled his body down without further notice, he fell - for what seemed to be the hundredth time - on the rigid ground. The impact his knee caps made on the ground resulted his skin to slowly tear off, showing all vulnerability with his open wound underneath his navy pants. "Tch!"

"Well, by the looks of things you're not _handling_ anything, Obito." the mentor pointed out nonchalantly, arms folded to show dominance in the field. "I suggest we _don't_ waste anymore time."

In the most microscopical detail Obito's face wrinkled as his face scrunched into a ball of frustration; Kakashi's voice still rang fresh in his mind, "..Give me some time to think."

"You've had time - _twenty years_." Madara was apathetic, like he always was in his youth, and he wanted to hurry and grasp his dream. "My eye, Obito, give it to me."

_Eye?_

"Don't tell me you're having second thoughts because of this-this... _weakling_." he scoffed.

Kakashi's hand balled into a fist to try to suppress his anger. He couldn't recall the last time he had been _graciously_ insulted. Since he was the prodigy of his generation, the feeling of humiliation was very much alien to him. And yet here, in this battlefield, he was being openly insulted without any hesitation. Nonetheless, he had no room to complain. After all, he was inferior against the other Uchiha, to bluntly put - _the_ Madara Uchiha.

"I'm not giving you your eye back, Madara." Obito finally answered, clear and strongly put. "Because, I'm not creating a world where the _fake_ Rin exists."

The younger Uchiha walked steadily to Kakashi's side, stretching one arm out as a shield against Madara. He could sense the venom forming in Madara's mouth by the second - even the atmosphere changed around them, it turned solemn again. "I-"

"Surely you jest!" The older Uchiha laughed. "It's already too late to turn back, Obito! The path I set you off is a one-way road!"

"...Who said I'm going to turn back?" Obito crookedly smiled after his response. "You're right, there's no going back in this world. We've killed everyone."

"So why do you oppose me now?"

The answer was simple in Obito's eyes. All he's wanted to see again was Rin's smile, but the sins he's committed has been proven to be fatal and treacherous. Rin wouldn't want to see him after everything he's done. She wouldn't smile or jump for joy after he had stained his hands with more blood any average ninja should handle.

Rin was his dream. Her acknowledgment was all he had ever wanted. Therefore the answer was simple -

"Because Rin's dream lies in this world."

Kakashi's body shook along with his scarlet orb - he actually managed to reach out to Obito from the realms of darkness he was in. Obito had come to a clear resolve after acknowledging what Rin's purpose in life was. He actually listened to what Kakashi had tried to drill into his head since the mask of deceit had shattered.

Obito's feelings were now pure, he finally reached an unambiguous conclusion: he wanted to protect Rin's dream to protect the world and village she dearly cherished. The conclusion was evident that Obito's emotions were no longer miscible.

"You-" Kakashi croaked harshly, voice was on a thin thread, his voicebox was starting to give up along with his body. "...Obito."

Madara's facial expression didn't change, that small smile filled with mockery was still there. "Ah, and this is why you're the _worst Uchiha_ to have ever surfaced," he stated, chuckling derisively. "Your heart can easily be tugged by women."

He wanted to tip him over again and coax him back to his side. After all, he still needed him. However, there was no denying it - the Uchiha brat had come to his final resolve and he can't be persuaded back again.

"So, you choose oppose me then, yes?" he tutted as he shook his head nonchalantly. "Fine, but Obito, it's not _nice_ to not give something you've _borrowed_ back."

_That something is-_

In a blink of an eye Madara swooped down low and appeared in front of Obito quickly - lightning fast, like Minato - with enough room to draw his hand out. "I shall be having _that _back." he grinned.

There wasn't any time to move nor react - it was too late - for both of them to respond. Their eyes widened in surprise but their bodies locked itself and binded together on the spot, refusing to move an inch.

Madara's index and middle finger snatched the Rinnegan out of Obito's eye socket, and placed it into his own right socket. "Ah, you were too slow, Obito."

The eyeless Uchiha stumbled back away from Madara with his hand placed on top of his empty, bleeding eye socket. He didn't anticipate such quick movement from the other Uchiha. To be frank, he was still in shock.

"Now then,"

_"Kakashi!"_

Sapphire blue Susano'o rose from the ground - in its skeletal form before it evolved it its armored plated form - with Madara as its user. "Shall we begin?" His Susano'o roared across the wasteland, twin swords spawned into its hands, ready to attack the traitor and survivor.

_"Obito!"_

The Jōnin helplessly limped to reunite with his comrade. He could feel Obito's stance weaken at the growing Susano'o in front of them. There was only one option they could resort to.

No words were spoken. They possessed the same eye. The _same_ power.

"You're nothing but a traitor," Madara commented before he clapped his hands. "_Death_ shall be the penalty for your disloyalty!"

Both arms of the Susano'o raised.

Their fully formed sharingan swirled dramatically in sync.

The arms flew down, full power and speed to the ground, shattering the crumbled surface even more.

Both of the Mangekyō sharingan sucked onto their scarce chakra, greedily sucking their lives in exchange to send the attack to another dimension.

_"Kamui!"_

_**~O~O~**_

The outcome of the battle remained vague for Kakashi. He was still dazed from the silver light that shone in the midst of their battle against Madara's Susano'o. Though the outcome was pretty clear - it was crystal clear - they had lost and died, Kakashi remained bewildered.

Everything was pitch black and cold. Was he dead? Or maybe he had become blind for overusing his sharingan. It was odd that he could still sense the chill in the air piercing and sinking its fangs into his bare skin.

Was hell rumored to be this cold? Actually, it was said to be scorching hot.

"Maybe I'm in Purgatory and I need someone to pray for me," a grim smile surfaced on his face. "Hah, then again, who would pray for me?"

**"Are in you in that much of a rush to meet Death himself?"**

Wait. Did he just hear that? Someone spoke and said something about meeting Death. Well, accounting everything that has happened that wouldn't be such a bad idea.

_"Kakashi!"_

That voice. It may have been quite raspy and rough on the edges but Kakashi was familiar with that voice. However he couldn't follow it, he was stagnant. Moreover, he wasn't even sure if he was still in possession of his body anymore.

_Click!_

The darkness somewhat evaporated before Kakashi's eyes. It was replaced with a white room - with no doors or windows, just a room. The Jōnin peered over his shoulder and saw no one. He was all alone in the empty, white room. What exactly happened?

More importantly, where is he?

Kakashi stretched his arms out and flexed his fingers with ease. He then tried stretching his legs out and it functioned just as well. His broken limbs were no longer damaged; it was back to normal. His hearing was a good as before, as sharp and tentative as before. But his original eye didn't regenerate back, he was still in the possession of one _borrowed _eye.

**"Are you done inspecting, young man?"**

It was that voice again. That calm, soothing voice echoed throughout the room with great fluidity. The voice was still unknown, despite Kakashi turning all the way around numerous times.

_Have I gone crazy?_

"Turn around again, Kakashi."

Obediently he spun around without hesitation, almost immediately his eye bore into the two people standing in front of him. "...Obi-you're alive." he whispered in disbelief. He took several steps forward till he was close enough to see that Obito was in fact stood in front of him, and was not a mirage. "W-What happened?"

**"I think I'm the man best suited to answer your question."**

Kakashi's gaze turned to the man who towered above him, causing him had to crane his neck to make eye contact. "...Who are you?" his voice small and more hesitant to what he initially expected. "Do I know you?"

The man had deep wrinkles embedded onto his peach-skin face, with a long goatee, and short spiky grey hair that was spiked up to the top. He also had horn-like protrusions above his eyebrows, as well as a red Rinnegan marking on his forehead that struck Kakashi's eye.

**"Most likely - I am the infamous Sage of Six Paths."**

"You...!" Kakashi gasped with his eye gaping wide.

"Was what I also said." Obito remarked. "He's the real deal, Kakashi."

**"Indeed I am. No ordinary man can call the dead back. Fortunately for you, I'm no ordinary man."**

Kakashi felt obliged to show his respect to the Sage, so he keenly bowed down in front of him. "Thank you very much, I appreciate your kindness!" his head lifted up slowly, eye tightened with questions. "But I doubt you brought us from the dead to... _this,_ just to _chat._" Eyebrows burrowed together as he stood back up on his feet, waiting for his response.

The man nodded truthfully. He held onto his long beard and ran his fingers through it. **"You're right. I _do _want something in return."**

_I knew it._

**"Prophecies were foretold about this war. But, I guess, they made one miscalculation -" **his wrinkled finger pointed directly at Kakashi as his eyes stared at him eagerly. **"Your existence and survival."**

"W-What?!" he stuttered, bewildered.

**"I thought I knew the outcome of this war because of Fate but you, Kakashi Hatake, your existence altered the outcome. And there had to be a reason for Fate to twist and let you live longer than the Child of Prophecy - Naruto Uzumaki."**

"...I know nothing of this!"

**"Of course you don't, most people don't. However, you do know that you want to change the past and your mistakes."**

The Sage stared at the Jōnin who flinched at his statement, the eye alone sent signals of the man's urgency to change the past. It didn't matter what twisted sentences would come out of his mouth; the truth was already told.

"I can simply want, but I can't have," Kakashi mused, "Second chances don't exist. No one can bend time and travel back."

**"I thought I already made it clear that _I'm_ the Sage of Six Paths."**

The silver-haired Jōnin didn't know what to think: was this all a joke, or humiliation, to make his failures more evident to him than before? To make him feel the ache in his heart, throb and pound harder than it ever did?

Or does he speak the truth? Can he _really_ send him back through time?

"Kakashi, listen to the Sage, he's much more powerful than you think." Obito interjected, arms folded with a stoic face. "Beside it's either go back to the past or stay dead in the dark."

**"At least one man understands me. Though it befuddles me because out of the two of you, I thought _Kakashi_ would be the man who would understand me."**

Kakashi remained dumbfounded with the situation unraveling before his very own eye. Though he couldn't completely understand, he knew that having another chance to simply change the past was better than being dead. "So, you want _us _to go back in time?"

He bit his lower lip for the Sage's response, he just hoped he didn't misinterpret the situation. Everything was still vague in his mind.

**"Not the both of you."**

"W-What do you mean?!" Kakashi stuttered, tongue-tied, and bewildered. "We're the only survivors!"

**"Young man, I may be powerful but there's a limit. I can only send _one_ of you back in time. The other has to sacrifice his remaining power to the other, so your chances of surviving won't be slim."**

"What happens if one doesn't give their powers to the other?" Obito questioned with an arched eyebrow.

The Sage hummed for a second, eyebrows knitted together as his hand stroked his long white goatee. **"Well, the person who travels back in time will have their body torn up into pieces."**

Kakashi grimaced at the Sage's calm response. The risk in order to travel back in time seemed too dangerous. However, the will was apparent in Obito's eyes: he has the intention to travel back in time to change the events that transpired. Events that happened without their knowledge and events that were caused by his own hands.

They _all_ need to change.

The silver-haired Jōnin remained frozen and speechless, his eye scanned the white room that felt so restricting around them. He opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. What trash would volunteer to travel back in time and mess things up again? He had his chance to redeem himself and prove to himself that he wasn't trash.

At the end - he failed... miserably.

Obito's eye also tightened as he quietly mused among himself. Then, after casting a small smile at Kakashi, he triumphantly stepped forward in the middle of the Sage and Kakashi. He cleared his throat before he spoke, "I'll be the sacrifice."

_What?_

Did Kakashi just hear that right? Obito to be the sacrifice? Did he lose his mind when they died?

"Obito!" he interrupted, "It's your job to go back to the past and make things right! You were right, there's no place for scums - like me - to ask for second chances."

The Uchiha glared at the Jōnin with irritation, but his lips curved into a faint smile. Softly he gripped Kakashi's shoulder for either comfort or indication to stop talking. "And you're also right: Rin wouldn't want to see me after this."

**"What be your answers, young men?"**

"_I'll_ be the sacrifice," Obito clarified sharply. He selfishly took on the burden without speaking to Kakashi to negotiate halfway. Not that there's anything to say between them, they practically wanted to kill each other in the battlefield.

Kakashi stepped forward next to Obito - both stared at the Sage with their remaining weary eye - and nodded quietly in agreement. "Fine, but I still think you're best suited for this." he mumbled.

The Uchiha Black Sheep silently held his hand out to the Sage who had a black staff stretched out with both hands. He glanced at Kakashi who mirrored his action, secretly Obito smiled at his comrade. The look of determination was vivid in the eye he lent Kakashi. It was clear to him that his comrade was better suited for the job. He possessed the same eye as Naruto Uzumaki - the eye of determination with the Will of Fire burning with an eternal flame.

"I have no regrets with my final decision." Obito whispered to Kakashi. "You will possess my powers and become stronger. You'll have my eyes. We'll finally be able to become one and protect Rin."

"Obito-" Kakashi bitterly replied as he tried to compose himself from choking back tears.

**"Kakashi Hatake, grab the staff. I shall bestow a new kind of power that only _you _will possess."**

Kakashi's hand clasped around the thin black rode tightly with his eye closed. "The honor is mine, Sage-sama."

**"You, Kakashi Hatake, shall have a Kekkei genkai running in your blood. With the new power I'm about to bestow within you, I have no doubt you'll succeed. However, with this power and the Uchiha's combined, it won't be easy to control."**

Obito raised his head up high with a smile plastered on his face, _'...You'll be able to protect Rin, Kakashi. I know you can do it.'_

**"Do you still wish to accept?"**

"Hai!" he answered quickly, almost stunning the other two. He felt the responsibility and trust within the rod, and the hardship waiting for him in the past. However, he felt calm and tranquil about the situation - Obito and the Sage had faith in him and that was enough to suppress the doubt hovering at the back of his mind.

**"Then, Kakashi Hatake, I shall trust you to change the past. Change the horrid outcome that lies in the future."  
**

"I shall do my best!"

**"Remember this well Kakashi - if you fail you will spend your days in Hell, and you will be enslaved forever. That is the consequence of traveling back through time."**

Kakashi nodded quietly and proceeded to grip the rod with his might. "I shall accept the consequences for my failure. No matter how cruel it may be."

**"Obito-boy, place your hand on Kakashi's shoulder and close your eyes."**

The young Uchiha complied and, gracefully, placed his hand on Kakashi's rock hard shoulder. He smirked when he felt Kakashi's shoulder stiffen, his breathing became more restricted and heavy. Before Obito closed his remaining eye, he glanced at Kakashi. "Relax, baka-Kakashi." he playfully teased.

"I am calm. Speak for yourself, your hand is trembling." Kakashi replied with a smirk curling at the end of his chapped lips.

_'...The bonds within these two is strong. The emotions Kakashi will bear will either overwhelm him or help him through the long exhausting hurdle he's about to face.'_

**"Alright. It's time. The time has finally come for me to cast this jutsu." **The Sage's grip around his staff tightened before the sharingan on his forehead spiraled into action. "**Kakashi, Obito open your eyes and use your Kamui at the sharingan on my forehead."**

In sync both Obito and Kakashi's eye opened with their full-wheeled sharingan intact, their tomoes swirled at a rapid pace clockwise, slowly curving into a fully developed Mangekyō sharingan wheel. Their pupil shook at the sight of the sharingan also swirling on the Sage's forehead as its ruby red color slowly turned into a strong purple with black rings dilating from the center.

_Mangekyō Sharingan!_

_Rinengan!_

Another eye blinding white light shone behind the Sage as the white walls that surrounded the three dissolved into nothingness, leaving tiny disintegrated white shards. The silver-haired Jōnin felt the staff in his hand disperse into small ashes, and Obito's hand somehow felt like it hovered above his shoulder. He couldn't feel anything and the white flash had blinded his line of vision, his third sense was the only thing he could rely on.

**"I trust you, Kakashi Hatake, to change the ways of Ninja."**

Kakashi couldn't respond back to the Sage despite his attempts to open his mouth and speak. It would only take around seventy-two facial muscles for him to reply, yet he couldn't seem to find the strength to utter one single word.

In the blink of an eye, the piercing light vanished with a small thunderclap and darkness overwhelmed Kakashi who still couldn't move his body. _'Shit..!' _The air around him thinned and oxygen started to become scarce, greedily Kakashi filled his lungs with oxygen before he exhaled deeply. Slowly, his senses started seeping in and he could feel Obito's hand still firmly on his shoulder.

"K-K-ahshi." Obito struggled to pronounce his name with very little energy he had inside him. He could no longer open his eye, he was pretty sure his sharingan wasn't intact anymore, and his chakra was on a whim. He knew was about to perish in any moment, he knew yet he didn't falter. Instead, with his remaining strength and will, he clutched on harder on Kakashi's shoulder for reassurance.

In an instant Obito felt his body disintegrating into the fathomless atmosphere. He didn't want Kakashi to hear his last words with a pitiful tone, he didn't want Kakashi to think he was scared of death.

Before his body scattered Obito opened his mouth and whispered, "Protect what Rin loves most."

_"Obito!"_ Kakashi automatically screamed as his _eyes_ snapped open with both of the Mangekyō sharingan swirling dramatically into obsidian orbs. But the Jōnin couldn't move his body to cling onto Obito desperately. He couldn't function, feel or move.

Obito's presence no longer lingered around the atmosphere; he was gone. His strength and powers had been inherited into Kakashi for his benefit.

Kakashi felt the darkness cloaking around his flesh with a tinge of coldness injecting into his body. Breathing became difficult and it wasn't long until the Jōnin started hyperventilating. '_I... What... What's happening?'_

Golden rays of light preyed upon his naked obsidian eyes and blinded him once more in the spot. Kakashi daringly tried to stare back at the light but his eyes refused to open. The numbness inside him became faint and his body started moving at his own accord once more.

_Open your eyes.. and walk to the light!  
_

Kakashi grunted stubbornly as he tried to peel his eyes open in order to stare straight into the light. _'I must...!' _The Jōnin's teeth dug into his bottom lip - strong enough to make it bleed - and his hands curled into a ball to muster up the strength radiating inside him. '_...I will!' _Both eyes snapped open, revealing his new onyx orbs, at his own will.

_Now walk towards the light._

Breaking free from his own restrictions that bound his own body to be stagnant, Kakashi moved his left leg forward, then his right, until he reached the apex of the golden light glowing in front of him. With a sigh of relief the Jōnin's posture relaxed and straightened, granting him to become more stable.

_Reach out... Reach for the light._

Kakashi stretched his arm out desperately to the light and grabbed the thin air and the light along with it. The light spiraled in a clockwise windmill motion with strong suction to another dimension. The man drugged with fatigue felt his body being sucked along with the light, but he complied and stepped forward to accept whatever challenge was ahead.

_Go and change the outcome, boy._

Protect what Rin loves most.

* * *

A/N: I _hope _this chapter somewhat entertained you guys. It's the first time I've written like this. XD I have tried to harness my writing style during my hiatus (I hope I didn't fail!) Anyway, I apologize for _any_ mistakes! I shall try to write better in future chapters. :D

Oh, a cool story recommendation for you guys!

**Uchiha Shuffle - **Duesal Bladesinger

_Chaos stirs as Uchiha Sasuke switches places at the worst possible time. A Road to Ninja story._

It's an awesome story with a cool concept and I highly recommend you guys read it!

Till I write again,

**Exciled3**


	2. To Live Another Tale

**Chapter 1: To Live Another Tale**

As consciousness began to penetrate through the black bliss in which he was immersed, Kakashi was hastily introduced to pain. It felt as if a wrecking ball was striking inside of his forehead with relentless ferocity, undying with its strength increasing per strike; whilst a more acute sense of agony gripped the back of his head as if sharp nails were burrowing their way into his scalp.

He could easily distinguish the second pain as a minor head injury, probably from the fall he had experienced when he hopped from one time frame to another. The rancid taste in his mouth only confirmed the presence of stale blood; seeing its scarlet property wasn't needed, the metallic taste with the consistency of salt had already proven so much to Kakashi - he _must_ have had one hell of a fall. However he was left befuddled with the first pain which attacked his forehead. It was sharp and it attacked simultaneously.

Kakashi remained idle on his spot, still trying to burst his way out and fully become conscious. Every sense in his body betrayed him apart from his ability to pick upon the most minuscule scent. His nose lightly twitched and immediately received a bursting amount of fragrances which clung over his surroundings. He picked up on sweat, newly cut grass, rotting leaves and a very familiar scent of a dog.

Hearing was far more complicated to utilize properly. His ears still held a sharp ringing tone which deprived him from listening much more attentively.

Up until now he had not relied on the sense of touch, mainly because he had not yet subjected any part of his body to the test of movement. Moving even an inch of his body may introduce far greater pain than he could, currently, handle. Slowly, with large precaution, he tried to reconnect with his limbs. He felt his legs move through silky, wet strands; which he could only guess was grass. His fingers responded next, lightly grazing upon the same texture as his legs, but he felt new pain lacerate his shoulders and arms.

Kakashi hissed through his teeth then paused, half satisfied with his efforts. Eventually he tried to open his eyes. The pain in his forehead increased, immediately forcing him to clamp his eyes shut again.

Gingerly, he squinted from behind half closed lids, staring directly at the sky which floated amidst the thick shrouds of golden-brown leaves softly rustling in motion with the zephyr. He inhaled contently whilst he mildly began to feign from consciousness again. The lids of his eyes became heavy; there was no use to fight against it, he was too drunk with fatigue to break free.

"Hey Kakashi," the voice was deep mixed with a raspy texture, "You should head back to the Hospital."

Wearily the Jōnin cracked his eyes open and traced to where the voice came from. In delight of seeing a familiar face his eyes creased whilst his lips curled to make the faintest smile. "..Pakkun." he croaked.

"You look worse than when you were in the Hospital!" the pug claimed, trotting over slowly. "I told you to recuperate, yet you wouldn't listen. Honestly... brats like you never listen."

Brat - it's been a decade and half since someone had addressed him with that belittling title.

Kakashi shifted and pushed himself up to a prominent sitting position against the Oak tree that loomed behind him. He grunted at the pain which simultaneously attacked every inch of his body, twisting and vexing swollen muscles. When he had finished settling his eyes clamped shut once more, this time he remained conscious.

"Oi kid, your father didn't leave you to me so you can-"

"...My father," only one eye cracked open, out of habit, its pupil directly glaring at Pakkun; "Is he alive?"

Pakkun was dumbstruck and this allowed for silence to settle in the foundation of their conversation. After a couple of seconds of wallowing in sentimentality the summon spoke again: "Sakumo sui-_died _three years ago, Kakashi."

His open eye drifted away again. '_Three years? That would mean I'm currently ten years old. No wonder this body feels very fragile.'_

"Where's Rin... and Obito?" Kakashi dryly asked.

"I don't know, Kid, I don't babysit those brats."

Kakashi chuckled before he struggled to stand back up, face twisting unpleasantly at the pain his body projected. However, pain was good. Pain meant he was still alive. And being alive meant he still has a chance, no matter how slim, to fully seize the oppotunity to change the future.

Tentatively, he drew his attention to his chakra gauge and checked his chakra levels: increasingly high, and rapidly rising. His gauge had expanded at such an amount it was surreal. '_What... this amount is..' _

"Kakashi are you alright?"

One pair of obsidian eyes gave a softened glance at the innocent pug. "Y-Yeah. Lead the way, Pakkun; we're heading to the Hospital."

A paw pointed directly at him, "Before we do that I suggest you pull your mask back up."

Clumsily the silver-haired boy grabbed the hem of his mask and yanked it back up to conceal of his face. "Thanks. _Now_ we head to the hospital."

_**~O~O~**_

Upon entering in the Hospital Kakashi was greeted with an astounding amount of noise from: the shuffling of feet, rustles from sheaf of documents being rummaged through, voices both loud and quiet mixed together to make one cluster-load of loudness.

Pakkun grimaced at the amount of racket being caused by human beings. "Today's very busy, it would seem." he dully noted to himself before he proceeded to walk deeper into the building. "Come on, your room is just down the hallway."

"That's very convenient." he grumbled, maneuvering his left leg forward first, then his right. Though the pain was still present he managed to compensate the lack of available movement by aiding every inch of his muscles with chakra. The right amount applied was enough to negate the pain he kept on inflicting upon himself per step forward.

Kakashi slowly sauntered through the reception room and down the corridors until he was met by an awfully familiar blonde medical ninja. Pakkun froze on his spot, eyes gaping wide at the woman whom had her arms folded with a stern face.

"Sneaking out again, gaki?" she sharply asked, eyebrow raising.

Before Kakashi could muster up enough words to reply her iron clad grip transferred onto his collar and his feet shamefully lifted off from the surface. He glanced briefly at the blonde only to meet her glare penetrating through him. "Uhm, what about putting me down?" he added a soft chuckle to ensure that she would know that he wasn't ordering her, in any way possible.

Having her misinterpret it would be fatal. He didn't want that.

Tsunade resumed to pace down the narrow corridor with Pakkun trotting beside her, grinning smugly at his summoner's degrading predicament.

"Do you know how busy I am today, Hatake?" Tsunade snarled through her teeth. "I don't have time to deal with your nonsense."

She expected him to scoff stubbornly and respond back with a rule he had so meticulously extracted from the Ninja's Rule Book for situations like these. However she was met with a soft laugh, it was almost breath-taking to hear Sakumo's son laugh back to respond.

"I guess I can examine your brain while I'm at it."

The time-traveler was let back on his feet when they had arrived in his temporary room. He grimaced at the bland room he was imprisoned in, it just reminded him: he was in a hospital. _Hospital_. He loathed every single letter, every syllable of it. Ever since the sharingan had been bestowed onto him the hospital quickly became a second home. A second, _unwanted_ home of his.

"Sit down on the bed, brat. I'll take a quick test on your brain. You're acting too weird for my liking."

Kakashi sheepishly scratched the back of his head, chuckling as politely as possible. "I-I don't think that's necessary, Tsunade-sama. I feel fine, honestly!"

She looked annoyed, her narrowed eyes aided his analysis. With a quick huff she swiped through his charts that were placed on his bed whilst he remained stood on the spot, waiting to get permission to move.

"Remove your clothes for me, Kakashi." Tsunade calmly requested, not glancing back up to witness his shock. "I'm not asking again,"

"I'm fine believe me!" he insisted stubbornly. _'If she sees my injuries.. what should I say? I fell from a tree whilst climbing to get a cat for an old lady? No, even I know tha-' _

"I'm not trying to peek at whatever you have hiding underneath those _things_," her finger pointed directly at his navy pants, "This is strictly professional. Leave your drawers on; I'm not doing a full body examination."

Obediently, with obvious signs of reluctance, Kakashi discarded his top along with his pants and shoes. Pakkun chuckled at the corner of room, loving the way his master tried to cover the lower part of his face with his bare hand.

Tsunade knelt down in front of the boy, prying his hand away from his face by force. She held his face by his chin then her thumb brushed across his cracked lips before she raised his upper lip up, revealing small blood stains coating his teeth. "You're _not_ fine at all, kid." she muttered deeply.

Kakashi raised his eyebrow upon hearing her. Did she just show a hint of concern? Odd. He _must_ have imagined it.

"The bleeding has stopped. And the wound isn't at all deep."

Her hand left his face then wondered down his upper torso, lightly running her fingers over his chest and the expanse of his stomach. Tsunade firmly pressed her palm against the left side of his chest with her hand glowing with a distinct emerald green. '_Heart rate: normal. __And so is the breathing.' _

Tsunade couldn't help but smirk at the boy's immediate reaction to clench his fists tight. After briefly indulging in Kakashi's uncomfortable position, she proceeded to check his other organs for any internal bleeding or severe damage. Thankfully she didn't receive any results to prove her worry.

Kakashi watched the medic's wondering hands warily as it skimmed through his arms and legs. He swallowed hard when she glared at him darkly. "W-What is it?"

"What kind of rigorous training have you been doing now?" Tsunade scowled, eyes rolling backwards in exasperation. This kid has been known to act more than his actual age, it's ridiculous. One time he even tried to tag along in Sakumo's S class assassination mission! It wasn't long until his father caught him and tied him down to restrain him, of course.

Honestly, this brat is too ambitious for his own damn good.

"N-Nothing I can't handle, Tsunade-sama." twin raven eyes wondered elsewhere, anywhere, just so he would not lock eyes with Tsunade and have an intense staring competition. It has happened before and he lost after a book was projected in between his face, inevitably breaking his nose. That was how he had come to realize that his Hokage didn't like being stared at so intensely.

"You have not been admitted out of the hospital yet, Kakashi," Tsunade snapped, "You careless boy."

She stood back up and wondered out of the room, "Don't move; don't get changed. Wait for me."

Exactly as ordered he stood completely stagnant on the spot. He had come to acknowledge at a young age that listening to your superiors is a necessity in the Shinobi World. Though time has flown and changed his appearance, his principles hadn't change.

After a couple of minutes standing idle Tsunade rushed back into his room with a roll of bandages. Meticulously, after she had healed his bruises, she applied bandages around his stomach and the bicep of his left arm. After she had finished applying the bandages she stood back up on her feet, expressing a heavy huff of irritation.

"Boys like you should not try and act tough, Hatake."

"Y-Yes, Tsunade-sama."

After she had finished rolling the leftover of the bandages, she took her clipboard and lightly sighed. "Go get changed and get back into bed. You need to rest."

Tsunade nudged him forward towards the bed before she turned on her heels to walk out of the door. "Remember: one more Shinobi Rule out of your mouth and I'll staple you shut. Am I clear?"

Kakashi paled, eyes wide as saucers. "H-Hai..." the tone of his voice lost all enthusiasm and spirit, it was all too bland. _'Come to think of it.. the Tsunade-sama Naruto managed to bring back was far... nicer. Who would have thought I would be the one saying that?'_

Both the summon and summoner remained idle on their spot until the door was slammed shut. Pakkun stayed awfully silent for an extended period of time, he was still wary of Tsunade's presence, she had always irked him out of his comfort zone. Once he was confident that her presence had left the corridor he shuffled back to his master who had already slipped underneath the covers, fully changed.

"You know you're acting awfully odd today. Did you eat something terrible whilst you were in the hospital?"

Kakashi hummed for an answer then admittedly sighed in defeat; he was far too tired to lie his way out of this. "Who knows?" he bluntly replied, settling down onto the mattress, crossing his arms behind his head.

Pakkun cocked his head to the side. '_This Kakashi seems far more laid back than before...' _

Although the summon had accumulated several questions in his mind that he oh-so-desperately wanted to ask, he steadied himself and shut off his thoughts. Obediently he jumped up onto the bed and curled up by Kakashi's feet, grumbling groggily in the process.

"Kid, I can feel you staring at me."

"What's wrong with that?"

"I'm trying to sleep. And I can't if I know someone is monitoring me."

"I'm not monitoring you."

"Just pipe down and take a damn nap, kid. Sheesh."

Kakashi laughed again. As it rang through Pakkun's ears the pug became more certain about his suspicion, he had never heard this laugh from him before. His usual laugh was sarcastic or quiet but this, this is... _different_. The laugh held a genuine tone coated with a tinge of happiness and appreciation. Nothing like Kakashi's usual laugh which he had become accustomed to.

'_I wonder what has gotten into him?'_

The room fell silent, Pakkun had fallen asleep and Kakashi remained awake on the bed, quietly treasuring the halcyon rustles from the trees. He watched the tree sway lightly outside with appreciative eyes. He had forgotten what peace felt like since the endless days of the Fourth Shinobi War. However he was now in the presence of peace, there wasn't a single dead body in sight, no noise of weapons clashing against each other nor were there any endless screams and moans of anguish. They had now disappeared... for the time being.

The Third Shinobi War wasn't far from their doorstep. The least he could do was indulge in the presence of serenity.

Kakashi resigned a small sigh of contention before his eyes clamped shut.

_**~O~O~**_

"Where is that baka-Kakashi, huh?!"

"Obito calm down, I'm sure Kakashi still needs time to rest."

"Heh. That stupid little-!"

"Refrain yourself from spouting foul language, Obito. We are at a public place, that's not the example you want to be setting."

"H-Hai, Minato-sensei."

Kakashi shifted away from his sleep when he heard a small commotion in the corridor outside. Twin obsidian orbs immediately shone to life and he quickly propped himself up on the bed, cursing inwardly at the sharp pain which momentarily cloaked around his body. Those voices rang with familiarity. _'Don't tell me that's-!' _Then he felt it. Warm. Overwhelmingly familiar. Throbbing with brightness and naïveté, the chakra glissaded over the expanse on the nape of his neck. No doubt crossed his mind, it was his team behind those doors, creating the usual fuss he used to despise.

Then it happened: the door swung wide open. It revealed non-other than a vexed Obito Uchiha; a benevolent Rin Nohara; and the legendary Yellow Flash.

"Hey, Kakashi-teme, how dare you hog the spotlight in the mission!" the Uchiha accusingly shot his index finger directly at the bed-ridden ninja who continued to stare at him breathlessly. "I was supposed to get that scroll, but you just had to butt in!"

Rin clutched onto Obito's forearm, "Obito, we came here to _comfort_ Kakashi!"

"It wasn't fair!" he stubbornly crossed his arms and pouted away. "I got sand in my eyes, and Kakashi decided to take the lead. If only I-"

Minato's hand muffled the rest of the childish banter Obito expressed, with a smile. "So, Kakashi, have you recuperated properly?"

At first the prodigy blinked blankly several times, stunned. Were they really standing there in front of him.. _alive_? Quarreling no less?

Kakashi nodded slowly. It would seem that his tongue had betrayed him.

"_Huh?!_ What's up with that answer?" Obito grumbled. "Can't you talk or something?"

Minato continued to examine his student tentatively with worried eyes. "Tell me, what do you remember?"

"I-" Kakashi managed to croak then he closed his mouth shut. His throat felt too dry like sandpaper, each word scraped against his throat harshly. Swiftly he licked his chapped lips and swallowed forcefully. "-Can't recall our mission."

Rin was the first to react. "Seriously?!"

Minato remained stoic. "I see. Considering that you sustained great damage in the mission; it's a possibility. Your brain must have fully shut down because of the overwhelming pain you experienced." the smile returned, "But I'm glad you're alright now, Kakashi. I've received your chart from Tsunade-sama and-"

"More like you _stole_ it from the reception desk," a sharp voice interrupted darkly in the conversation. "Didn't you Minato?"

The first syllable spoken alone was enough to make the blond exude underneath his light blue Jōnin uniform. He hadn't anticipated for Tsunade to notice, after all it was in a pile of other charts. Slowly he turned around to lock with Tsunade's glare. "I-I planned on returning it..." if his other two students were meticulous enough with the most minuscule detail then they would have witnessed their teacher's body shaking. Kakashi, on the other hand smiled, that fact was blatantly obvious to him.

Obito raised a brow. "Hey Minato-sensei, why are you scared of her? She's _only_ a woman!"

Tsunade grinned darkly. "Oh, that's a lot coming from you, gaki!" she wanted to kill him in that very spot, the tone of her voice, which was potent with deadly intent, can attest to that. She took paced steps forward to the Uchiha, purposely leaning down to cast a shadow over him. "_Boys_ who make up pathetic excuses cannot say anything."

"What was that?!"

"Sand in your eyes, seriously? How can sand get into your eyes when you wear goggles _all the time_?"

"W-Well-"

She snorted in derision. "Sit down kid, you might get yourself hurt."

Obito scrambled backwards in order to evade her index-finger-flick on the forehead move, eventually falling on top of the bed, his back crushing on top of Pakkun. He jolted back on his feet against the pug's sharp snarl, nearly slamming into the blonde medic's chest in the process.

"Ah, clumsy.. _and_ a pervert." Tsunade concluded, pushing him towards Rin. "I'm not surprised; Minato is _indeed_ Jiraiya's disciple."

Sheepishly Minato ruffled his hair, shredding a weak laugh to compensate for the deafening silence which befell on them. "I-Is that what you think of me, Tsunade-sama?"

"Well you're not as bad," Tsunade shrugged lazily, "I have Kushina to thank for that."

Kakashi shifted on the bed, a whimsical attempt to reach back down on the surface again. He was refrained from doing so when Tsunade placed her hand abruptly on his shoulder, lightly digging her fingers into his shirt's fabric.

"Don't force yourself," she said plainly but with enough concern to make Kakashi curtly nod, "Rest and take it easy. If you do that, you should be out of this building by tomorrow afternoon."

That was good news.

"_But _if I see your masked face here this month again, Kakashi-" she snarled sharply.

The time-traveler swallowed hard.

"-I will break your bones myself. Understood?"

Before Kakashi could reply - or try to at that - an extremely masculine form of chakra clenched into his nape, alerting him of the incoming presence. He felt it coming closer at an incredible rate. It was heavy and powerful. The chakra raised his attention. This was-

"Beauty kills right, Kakashi?"

-Jiraiya, the Legendary Pervert.

Tsunade huffed directly at her teammate who was prominently propped on the window sill. He wore a mischievous grin matched with eyes heavily potent with perverted intent which could personify one thing. One thing only: more research based activities in the Hot Springs.

Kakashi flinched, looking over his shoulder to see the young Jiraiya in his prime staring down at him with a chappy smile. "J-Jiraiya-"

"What are _you_ doing _here_?" Tsunade sharply asked, crossing her arms, eyes narrowed.

"Cold as always my dear Hime," the perverted man replied, ruffling the back of his hair before settling down onto the hospital floor. "Do not fret, I am here for Minato-kun, and _not _for your work colleagues."

Her honey eyes screwed a look of skepticism, she didn't trust her comrade no matter how sincere his voice sounded. Nevertheless she brushed off his sentence and propped herself on a nearby stool whilst she reexamined Kakashi's results.

Minato averted his gaze to Jiraiya. "What is it, Jiraiya-sensei?"

"My boy, it is time." a small twinkle developed in his eyes. "This time_ we will_ succeed."

Obito slammed both of his hands down into the bed, startling Pakkun from his nap once more. "What time?! Is this some awesome jutsu!?" he vociferated, "Take me too, Jiraiya-sama!"

"Nope, I can't do that."

"Eh, why not?" he whined.

"This business of your sensei-"

"I am _not_ included in this conquest of yours, Jiraiya-sensei." Minato interrupted lightly.

"Hey, now don't go saying that when you have peeked into Hot Springs countless amount of times with me!"

The room went silent. Obito's jaw dropped; Rin's smile began to fade; Minato's face froze and paled several shades lighter; Kakashi's eyes shifted from the ceiling to Tsunade rising from the stool.

He knew what was going to happen. It wasn't going to be pretty. However -

"Minato-kun, is that true?" a different voice pierced through the room.

\- having Kushina involved as well may involve a very ghastly death for both of the older male ninjas in the room.

Minato turned around only to meet two terrifying women cracking their knuckles in sync. Shakily he brought his hands up in defense, chuckling nervously as they drew closer to him. "Ku-Kushina, what a pleasant surprise!"

"It is, isn't it?"

Jiraiya nonchalantly nodded before he closed his eyes after he saw Tsunade step closer towards him, eyes looking ever so menacingly. "A man only grows stronger when he faces the consequen-"

"Shut up, you egg-headed perverted!" the tone of her sentence was just as strong as the strength that had been pented up in her knuckles.

As expected the white-haired pervert crashed out of the hospital window with blood spraying out of his nostrils. Tsunade huffed then swiped her bangs away from her face. "Like hell will I heal that perverted fool when he comes crawling back here."

"Ahh, damn it, dattebane!" Kushina shrieked, fist hitting the air instead of Minato.

"What's wrong?" Tsunade asked, turning back around with her face unpleasantly wrinkled with concern.

"He teleported away from me!"

_**~O~O~**_

"This isn't much but Minato-sensei told us to buy you something to help you pass time here in the hospital." Rin pulled out a brown, hardback notebook with pink strings of ribbons encasing around its body. "I hope you like it!"

She had her head bowed down in front of him as if to show desperation to be appreciated. Kakashi warmly smiled underneath his mask as he took in her gift. "Thanks, Rin."

"Here." another voice bluntly interjected from the other side of the bed.

Kakashi gazed up at the right side of the bed and saw Obito looking away with his lips pursed, clinging desperately onto his pride. His gaze then wondered down to the rectangular object that had been so carefully wrapped with a dark blue paper. The uncut edges of paper and overused sellotape to bind it all together was fascinating, if not humorous.

People would think that the Uchiha would be the clan who would fixate on the tiniest detail, but Obito's piece of work contradicted that opinion. He truly is _the_ Black Sheep of the clan.

"Thanks." Kakashi smiled once more underneath his mask.

Obito caught his smile and blushed, causing him to panic. "B-Baka, stop smiling like that! It's creepy!" he hid his blushes behind his arm. "Besides it was Minato-sensei who told me to buy you a gift, I _didn't_ want to do it."

"Thanks." Kakashi repeated once more, the tone of gratitude not fading away. "Thank you, Obito."

"Damn it, stop saying that already!"

Rin giggled softly, cheeks being tainted with a light pink color. "This is the first time you two are actually getting along!"

"Eh?!" Obito was geared to roar out a colorful protest. "We aren-"

_"Dynamic Entry of Youth!"_

Another voice vociferated through the steel doors before it was pried open by the overly-zealous Guy Might. The young boy clad in a green jumpsuit ran inside the room and stood next to Obito, wearing an eye-blinding smile. "My dear rival-"

"_Rival?!_" the Uchiha questioned, veins throbbing out from his temple. "He isn't your rival! He's _mine_!"

Guy cupped his chin then raised one thick eyebrow up. "Who are you?"

"W-What do you mean, who am I?!" he pointed his finger at him. "We fought in the Chuunin Exams!"

More confusion registered on Guy's face. "We did?"

"Yes! Anyway, that's not the point!"

"It's not?"

"The point is that Kakashi is my rival, got it, _Eyebrows_?!"

"Heh, you're full of Youthful Spirit, Four-eyes. I like that!" Guy gestured at Obito to come at him after he had gotten into his fighting stance. "Let's duel for the title of Kakashi's Eternal Rival!"

Kakashi grimaced at their childish spar. "You know-"

Obito grabbed Guy's collar and smashed their foreheads together, teeth gritting furiously. "It's Obito Uchiha, Eyebrows!"

"That's a ridiculous name. There's no Youth in that name!"

"The only thing that's ridiculous here is your bowl haircut!"

"Your words hold so much Youth! So it's a battle of Youthful words, huh? Then I won't lose, as Kakashi's Eternal Rival, I must redeem myself!"

The masked prodigy's eyebrows began to twitch. "Guy-"

"No, no, my Rival, this must be settled once and for all! So just sit tight and don't go anywhere. I want you to witness this."

Kakashi's face fell farther more with befuddlement, "Guy, you do know that I can't get out of bed, right?"

"Oh.. well then, just sit tight,"

Both of Obito and Guy's balled hands came up into the air, threatening to land a blow. Their faces reeked with determination and concentration. Things had just become serious.

"I'll win this time!" Obito roared, drawing his hand down.

"When it comes to Youth, I cannot lose!" Guy replied, lips edging a bright smile intoxicated with mirth.

Rin expressed a look of worry as she tried to intervene, only to halt at the voice of Kakashi's: "No, leave them be."

"W-Why?"

"_Watch_."

Their fists flew down in a synchronized motion. "Rock, paper, scissors!"

"Again!"

"Again!"

"Again!"

Kakashi shook his head slowly, sighing. "That's why."

_"Youth wins once again!"_

_**~O~O~**_

Sunset finally came. Pigments of ember began to taint the sky's faint blue color as the sun began to set whilst the moon began to embark on its highest mark.

Rin and Obito had remained sat in front of Kakashi, silent and still. Pakkun had long left the hospital after his summoning time had long exceeded its limit, leaving the room hallow from conversation.

Wearily the Uchiha child yawned and stretched his arms out before he stood back up on his feet. "Oi, baka-Kakashi," he began, arms folded behind his head. "I expect to see you tomorrow afternoon at the Academy's rooftop."

"Count on it." Kakashi's eyes attentively followed the shuffling of Obito's feet as he worked his way to the steel doors.

"Don't be late," the Black Sheep of the Uchiha looked over his shoulder and smirked. "Is what you would normally say, right?"

"Ob-"

"Don't worry, it may not look like it but my time management has improved!" a thumbs up of reassurance was sent to their way. "So, baka-Kakashi, make sure _you're_ not late."

Confidently the masked prodigy folded his arms and smirked. "That goes without saying."

_Although that may be a problem since I have grown quite accustomed - or fond, which ever sounds less tacky - to being five hours late.._ Was left unsaid by the former-dubbed Copy Ninja. Since he was known for his punctuality in the group, to claim otherwise now would certainly be too out of character.

"Hmp. Alright, I'll see you tomorrow, Rin, Kakashi!"

The remaining ninjas in the hospital room listened closely to the faintest sound of the sole of Obito's sandals echoing through the currently unoccupied corridors of the hospital.

Rin stood up next, still wearing a sweet smile on her face. "I've got to get going too." her hand softly cupped Kakashi's whilst her other hand simultaneously balled up into a fist of determination. "Remember, keep resting and you'll be out of here tomorrow!"

"Yeah," Kakashi faintly smiled as his eyes arched upwards. Immediately he broke out of his smile and his eyes opened only to meet his teammate furiously blushing at him.

Blinking out of surprise, Rin withdrew her hand and quickly bowed her head down in hopes that it would conceal her tainted cheeks. "An-Anyway t-t-omorrow, okay?" quickly, without looking back up, she bolted out of the room, completely flustered.

"See you tomorrow, Kakashi!" Rin managed to shout after she had scrambled in the hallow corridor.

"Tomorrow, huh?" he lowly whispered, choking out a mixture of soft sobs and laughs. With a resigned shaky sigh, Kakashi leaned his head back on the wall and huffed with exasperation before he sank back down onto his mattress, hand held up high to the ceiling.

Slowly he flexed his fingers out as his obsidian orbs flickered and revealed twin, matured sharingan glaring daringly up at the ceiling. Jet black tomoes spun clockwise in the pool of red of his eyes, gradually bending into the last stage - the Mangekyō sharingan.

"I didn't think I would hear that again."

Gently the edge of his lips tugged upwards before his Kekkei Genkai flicked off, without a trace. His hand shifted through the softness of the white sheets and then he clasped onto the notebook Rin had generously given him.

He unraveled the notebook from its ribbons then quickly flicked through the pages. Kakashi shifted on the bed and carefully propped himself up again, groaning lightly against the acute pain that has concentrated on his shoulder blades.

The notebook was placed on his lap, cover open on a fresh page. Kakashi clicked his tongue and reached for the pen that had been abandoned by Tsunade after his last examination on the table next to him.

Once the pen's nib touched the surface of the paper Kakashi began to meticulously write inside it, concentration intact. With a sigh he retracted the pen from the paper and looked back at his work, eyes quickly scanning over the names of ninjas he had listed down the page.

"This is like piecing together a puzzle," Kakashi mused out loud, "If I can't piece together these pieces; I won't be able to get the result I want."

Eyes narrowed bitterly at the thought.

"In order to alter the future, I need to change these people's outcomes."

His gaze shifted to his open door and locked onto the blonde medical ninja whom he used to call Gondaime-Hokage.

"Dan," Tsunade beamed, the kind of expression Kakashi had never witnessed until then. "Back so soon?"

The tall, lean man clad in the standard Jōnin outfit took several steps towards Tsunade before he decided to stop mid-way. His hand rested prominently on his hip and the strands of his pale blue hair fell further to frame his face.

"The escort mission went faster than I anticipated," Dan replied with a chappy smile. "But I guess that's a good thing, because now I can spend more time _here_."

Kakashi analyzed the situation outside his door closely until the two adults disappeared from his sights. The nib of his pen touched the surface of the paper once more.

_Dan Kato; Tsunade Senju._

His tongue clicked again but this time his lips arched upwards.

The pieces are now at his hands, all he needs to do is to piece them together to create a beautiful picture.

Although it won't be the utopia Madara had envisioned... it'll be _real_ and everyone will be alive controlling their own destinies.

This time for sure... he will seize this opportunity and keep his promise.

_Obito, rest easy now... I will save Rin. This time for sure..._

* * *

A/N: I am terribly sorry for my incompetence as an author! I can't believe that I haven't updated for this long. It's mind-boggling in a sense of how much time can whiz past us. I cannot justify my absence with a good answer apart from the fact that I was extremely busy. So forgive me, yeah?

_(Sorry for any mistakes, as well)_

Oh, I didn't know whether I should insert this or not, but lately I have been more fond of the romantic aspect of things. So this story will have romance in the sidelines. However it won't be a focal point, it will just be applied lightly in different places of this story. Don't worry I won't string your emotions around and sucker-punch ya'll at the end. Romance will mainly be fixated on the canon pairings, MinaKushi; DanTsu; AsuKure and so on and so forth. ;)

Anyway, happy reading! And thank you for the reviews, follows and favorites. They are all awesome to have!

I doubt I can update anytime soon, so here are some stories which are definitely worth your time!

**Branches** by To Mockingbird

_Kakashi falls off a tree and lands in a different world. Literally. Now he's in a dimension where nothing makes sense—but he's used to that. Kakashi plans to wreak as much havoc as he can and find his way home . . . if he can._

**Running in the Shadows **by Igornerd

_In a world of science, advanced technology and cyberspace hackers, powerful corporations control the world. Deciding the fates of masses that inhabit the urban sprawls. Yet in the corners of society, the ostracized live their lives in secret, running in the shadows. AU. Rated T for violence and language._

**Phantom Pains **by mapplepie

_There is something going on with Kakashi, and Minato can't figure out what. All he has are distressing deductions, each one progressively worse than the last. It's no wonder Minato can't help but fear and fear and fear. (To be fair though, it really wasn't his fault he never considered the possibility of time-travel)_

Till next time,

**Exciled3**


	3. The Shadow of His Smile

**Chapter 2: The Shadow of His Smile**

Everything had happened in a blink of an eye. He had ran, full throttle, at a masked ninja then his hand abruptly found itself plunged through flesh and bones. He hadn't meant it. He didn't mean to... he meant to _stop_. But, at his given speed and lack of finesse in footwork, he found himself at the mercy of God. A splutter of blood gurgled from her cracked lips, and he trembled in fright.

Had he? No... certainly not! She was supposed to go back to the village - where it was safe! Damn it, damn it, _damn it! _His mismatched eyes widened in shock-horror - she was... bleeding. Rin was... _bleeding._

"K-Kakashi,"

Soft spoken, not an ounce of bitterness left her tongue. Kakashi remained comatose; a living statue. His bloodstained fingers trembled with overwhelming guilt reverberating through his body. Then the cackling of his newly-dubbed Chidori eventually subdued abandoning him to the cruel reality with the vestige of his comrade's life on a whim.

_Rin..._ he mouthed.

Kakashi felt every muscle in his body contract. Respiration toiled in his lungs. He couldn't breathe. His arm was heavy, embedded too deep, trapped in a mélange of blood, tissue, organs, bones. Punctured. _Jagged._

It was already too late. She had drawn her last breath and spoke the last syllables she could muster. With a prolong grimace, Kakashi withdrew his hand from her chest and drew her in for solace. His lips trembled as he felt her frail body against his, just leaning over his small frame in vain.

He didn't want to at first - but he wasn't left with a choice - he _had_ to let her go.

_"RIN!"_

Kakashi came awake panting and thrashing, drenched in cold sweat and shivers. His face nestled in his clammy hands, chest falling and rising, heart pulsing in an erratic tempo, tremors creeping down his spine. It was nothing but a sensation, dread convulsing inside, suffusing veins and arteries, blood poisoned and chill, orphan of memory and origin. He was trapped in a harsh -

"What is it, Kakashi?" A soft voice inquired not too far from his position. "A-Are you... alright?"

Immediately he broke out of trance. _That voice... _Horrified, he slowly glanced back up with widened eyes. Mismatched eyes met innocent soft hazel. "You..." he had began before he refrained himself from speaking any further.

That couldn't be. This... _this_...

"Kakashi, are you alright?" she further inquired, the tinge of worry became blatantly obvious. "It's me-"

Kakashi's heart skipped a beat.

"-Rin Nohara." she smiled gently then took delicate steps toward him, as if he was a nervous fawn.

Jaw-hard, tensile, he shuddered. "..No... you-"

"Hmm?" Rin had sat down at the side of his hospital bed, then cocked her head to the side with a meek expression.

Sweat clung on his skin, dripped in dips and crevices, hair damp, matted against his scalp. A slacked expression contorted into fear, and in a whitewash of anxiety Kakashi whipped his head side to side, looking for any sharp objects he could get a hand of. A scalpel came to his peripheral.

"You should calm down!" Rin urged, gripping him by his shoulders, refraining him from leaning in to clutch the potential weapon.

Kakashi was silent. She had awfully warm hands. On the contrary from what he felt in the nightmare that had clutched him. He broke out of trance when she cupped his naked cheek in a loving manner. A rueful smile etched onto the surface of his lips, only for a split second. His own hand laced on top of hers as he resigned a sigh.

"Rin," he breathed, treasuring every syllable that rolled off his tongue. _I'd almost forgot... this _is _reality._

"You're safe now, Kakashi." she reassured softly, as if she were talking to a child. "You're here in Konoha."

His lip quivered but he caught it with his teeth, bitterly sinking his teeth in delicate flesh. His hand clutched onto hers tightly, refusing to let go, afraid to let her slip from his grasp again.

"Yeah... I'm home."

**_~O~O~_**

Jiraiya is a man known to be prone to make unwise decisions. One would be smart enough to learn from their mistakes. But not the gallant, it only adds fuel to his fire of curiosity.

The night had just become auspicious - late as it is - for shenanigans that could cause him dearly, a limb or two, on any other day. However today wasn't like any other day. Because of Dan's abrupt arrival from his mission, Tsunade has generously made allowances for Jiraiya's mischief.

The plan he concocted wasn't exactly his best. After all, he had just thought about it just then. It was needless to say that his plan was dangerous. It was always dangerous when it involved Tsunade.

He plans to watch from afar, through the window and witness her outrage. Having Dan suddenly enter in her outburst would be an icing on the cake as well. Dan isn't ignorant to the fact that his girlfriend has an unbelievable streak for violence, but he isn't _exactly_ accustomed to it.

"And you said you would never heal me," Jiraiya teased after Tsunade bandaged him up, repairing the damage she had previously inflicted on him. "Admit it - you _love_ me."

She grimaced, throwing a rolled bandage at him softly. "Don't get ahead of yourself, you pervert."

He smirked back.

The gallant pervert has always indulged in conversations, such as this, with his blonde teammate. She possessed a sharp wit, volatile temper, strength which rivaled over a hundred, and not to forget she had _those curves_. Everything about her was a fantasy.

Jiraiya has undeniably written a myriad of words over his time as a novelist, all intertwined with linguistic features to make the strokes of black ink on his paper come to life. Yet, no matter how many words he has accumulated through countless amounts of reading, he still couldn't find a way to fully capture his teammate's beauty.

_Pulchritudinous. _He thought with a slanted grin, messily scribbling it on the crumbled paper of his.

Tsunade was looming behind him with an arched brow of confusion. "What does that mean?" she asked, leaning against Jiraiya's back.

The man chuckled with high pride. "Oh, who would have thought a word like this could stymie your brain. And here I thought you were a genius."

A soft taunt, a childish one at that. Tsunade resigned a huff as she continued to rummage through her drawers for the discharge papers she needed to sign.

Jiraiya deposited the crumbled piece of paper on Tsunade's desk. He ripped another piece of paper from his spare notebook, scribbling three things on it; something that a medical ninja like Tsunade could get in a heartbeat. It was a daring mission he signed himself off to. If it was successful, he was going to treat himself to a mixed hot springs area. If it was a failure though, he was pretty sure he'd wound back on the hospital bed, barely breathing.

"Do you require my help, _sweet _Hime?" he asked gently, looking over his shoulder.

She blinked at him and narrowed her eyes into slits, "What are you up to?"

He had forgotten just how reminiscent of a butcher knife her eyes could become when she was suspicious. Suddenly the entire plan seemed a tad bit more hazardous and not entirely thought out. He even heard his own gulp ring in his head.

"N-Nothing," Jiraiya wore a strong façade, one that's sure to rub off if she kept up her scrutinizing glare. "Can't a man help out a woman in need?"

She decided not to answer him because arguing was too childish in her place of work, and there was a pile of paperwork that needed to be finished. She was more than positive something was afoot, she also knew a chakra-coated fist into his gut would be enough to spill the beans of his scheme, but she remained perfectly composed. In a way a small part of her wanted him to humor her, he's always had a knack for those things. And after such a tiring day with countless patitents, she needed a little bit of his stupidity.

But she heard the wooden chair pull back. Followed by a small sound of clothes being fastened. He was leaving.

"Well," Jiraiya pushed himself up back up on his feet, disheveling his hair further with a sigh. "If you _ever_ change your mind."

Tsunade silently watched her teammate plant another paper on her desk. She remained polite and smiled at him as a way of saying goodbye, he kindly returned the same gesture. Swiftly, with a triumphant grin settled on his face, he vanished with a howl of leaves.

Out of morbid curiosity, the blonde medical ninja unfolded the paper from its sealed state. She knew it was not a good idea - but she was stubborn, a trait she both loved and hated with burning passion.

5 – 7 – ∞

"What's that in your hand, Tsunade?" Dan asked from behind as he leaned down to prop his chin on her shoulder, delicately yet affectionately. Lightly, like feather, his hand gripped her unoccupied shoulder, gently caressing it to ease the tension welling up. "Looks like it needs to be deciphered."

Tsunade growled lowly with a stern glare. She should have known better, damn it. That man. She should have known by now. He has never changed ever since the day they met. "It doesn't matter."

Within seconds the piece of paper was annihilated by raw strength. With a huff she leaned back and her lover welcomed her, arms snaking around her waist, reeling her in further against him.

"Are you sure?" Dan quirked an eyebrow up when Tsunade's chest rose again as she expressed ragged sighs. "Don't you think the Hokage would have wanted to know what that content said?"

"Not if he wants to find out Jiraiya's girth, length, and how he could practically go on for eternity."

"Oh," the Jōnin's mouth was left hanging low, unable to fully respond. "No wonder why women always want a piece of Jiraiya."

Tsunade roared out a laughter, chest rising and falling above Dan's arms. "Did he tell you that?" It was rhetorical, she already knew. The two have had been dispatched to several missions together. It wouldn't be a surprise if Jiraiya _had_ started to tell him the tales of his conquest. "And you _actually_ believed him!"

"Well.. he seemed pretty adamant about it,"

"You are such a fool, Dan."

Her lover's eyes traced back to the other crumpled paper lying around on the table, completely deserted. "What does the other piece of paper say?" He withdrew his arms from Tsunade, much to her dismay, and sauntered towards the desk with curiosity.

"I'm not entirely sure," a soft reply that feigned interest. Knowing Jiraiya he's bound to have written something more perverted. Another alternative is that he has scribbled a bunch of large breasts across the page.

He straightened out the paper, momentarily bracing himself for more perverted jokes, but the paper was used for one word: "Pulchritudinous..." he read out in a mutter.

Tsunade folded her arms. "Oh yeah, he refused to say what it meant." It somewhat surprised her that Jiraiya left such a note. Then again, it _may_ be a lewd word.

Dan cheekily smiled at her when she pouted slightly. "It's cute to know that _even you_ can be clueless at times, Tsunade."

She pouted even more like a child deprived from sweets. "Tell me what it means then." she grumbled.

"It's an ancient word which describes an aesthetically pleasing person - someone who possesses great beauty." he elaborated, another smile resurfaced. "For such a beautiful meaning, the word sounds ugly, don't you think?"

Tsunade clutched at his arm before she leaned her head against the slope of his shoulder. "That man, stupid as he acts, can be romantic with words."

"Do you think he's writing another novel?"

"Most likely," she replied. "Probably a tale filled with heroism and women."

Dan looked at the paper, rereading the word in his head. Dan is not ignorant of the gallant's feelings. He knew who _exactly_ this adjective was meant for. But he dismissed such thought when he felt Tsunade's body press against his ever so slightly.

He smiled. "Whoever he's describing must be so beautiful. Not even this word can salvage his chances of ever portraying such beauty."

The paper was discarded in the black bin that sat beside Tsunade's desk.

"It's a shame..."

From afar, Jiraiya inspected the occurring events with his binoculars - his calculations were _all_ wrong. She didn't bring Hell on Earth. If anything she looked content beside Dan. And he stood there with a loving stare downcast on her as he stroked the bangs away from her face, leaning in closer, whispering inaudible things that made Tsunade blush furiously before she playfully punched his arm.

The gallant hopped off the tree, retracted his binoculars into his inner pouch and headed down to the mixed bathing areas.

He didn't win his own bet, but he didn't lose either...

_**~O~O~**_

Kakashi's eyes were fully fixated on his dominant hand: clench, flex, and roll. It functioned just as well yet it didn't feel... _similar_. Power pooled in all of his chakra points ready to be released; the feeling was sensational. Deep phantom black mist clouded the young prodigy's eyes as he glared at both of his hands shaking at the sheer amount of power it withheld.

"This power... _this_ feeling; I like it." he muttered under his breath, unintentionally shredding out a light grin.

The masked boy stretched out his arms, groaning softly as he did so. The pain which was so acute in his shoulder blade seemed to have subsided. Kakashi flinched at the realization that he could no longer acknowledge the pain. Such an injury, normally, would take up to two days to fully heal. However it's only been a matter of hours and his body felt good as new.

"I see you're doing well,"

The languid voice reverberated across Kakashi. It was very distinguishable, turning around to acknowledge his presence wasn't necessary. "Minato-sensei," he spoke.

The blond man settled on the edge of the hospital bed with a smile laced with ruefulness. "Are you doing better now? Does your body still ache? Are you alright?" He asked in a frantic manner, startling the silver-haired child in the process.

"Sensei," Kakashi drawled. "I'm fine. I might even get discharged tomorrow morning. As for my injuries," he stretched his arms, relieving the remaining tension that was ebbing in his muscles. "It's healed pretty quickly."

Minato's apologetic facial expression eased into something softer, more relieved looking. His sapphire orbs regained its normal hue. Delicately, he placed his hand on his student's shoulder, smiling lightly. "I'm glad that you're okay. I just wish-"

"Being injured in missions is a normal occurrence - it's the life of a shinobi." Kakashi reasoned evenly. The calmness of his voice was as tough as steel, but it held enough gentleness to soothe Minato's contrition. Finally, the masked child smiled. "I'm a ninja, aren't I, sensei?"

The older ninja laughed. "Of course you are, Kakashi."

"This injury will serve as my learning curve; to ensure this kind of incident won't happen again."

Minato placed his hand on top of the child's head, ruffling it slightly until strands of silver began to messily mat together in a disheveled state. He's always known that the boy was strong, especially for his age, but to remain optimistic was - once - an oblivious territory for the child. Normally, the child would be spiteful towards himself, claiming that he was still too weak.

But the Kakashi he was staring at wasn't reprimanding his skills or prowess. Instead, he remained perfectly _content_.

"Get well soon." Minato finally said, standing back up. The child nodded as a response, nothing more.

Before the dubbed Yellow Flash could disappear, a violent roar vociferated outside in the corridors: "Minato, where are you? I know you're hiding, dattebane!"

"Kushina!" He shrieked before he clumsily rummaged through his pouch, looking for his special kunais. In a frantic manner, the blond hurled the projectile through the open window, saluted to his student and disappeared.

By the time Kushina had charged in the hospital room, it was already barren of Minato's presence. She looked at Kakashi who feigned innocence and ignorance of the matter. He looked up from the book he was reading, cocked his head to the side as if to ask for her reason to be in his room. "Kushina-san,"

Her lips curled into a twitching smile as she desperately tried to hide her inner rage. "Kakashi-kun, have you seen Minato?"

"Sensei?" he played dumb. "I thought you would have killed him by now."

"In due time, Kakashi-kun." she replied in a deadly manner.

Minato meandered in the busy streets of the Hidden Leaf, hands shoved deep in the swells of his pockets, whistling lightly as he walked. Running away from Kushina certainly isn't easy - she's an Uzumaki! They can't be fooled so easily.

Besides, it wasn't entirely his fault that he was conned into infiltrating the women's hot springs area. Jiraiya was just sly enough to change the signs outside. In truth, he thought he was in the men's area.

Saying he didn't appreciate the _view_ would be a lie, though. He's a man, after all. Thinking back, that could be seen as biological research! Yes, it was all for science. He ruffled his hair irritably, he was getting _too_ influenced by his master. He was even starting to think like him! Honestly...

Coolly, he continued to blend in with the crowd in a calm manner. It wasn't until a pang of killing intent became tangible in the atmosphere that his step stopped mid-way. Minato looked over his shoulder and saw nine locks of scarlet tresses defying gravity with red chakra profusely seeping out of her system. One pair of eyes gleamed ominously, and a vein in her forehead throbbed.

It wouldn't be ridiculous to say that Kushina held reminiscence of the infamous Kyūbi.

"Minato, we're not done yet!" She bellowed.

Before she could push through the crowd, Minato had already ran away in a scurried motion.

_**~O~O~**_

In the dark seclusion, where limited amounts of silver illuminations shone through the curtains, Kakashi undressed from his casual wear and slipped into his newly-washed uniform. He began to cover his ankles with bandages before he fitted his feet into his blue sandals. Kakashi then carefully knotted his forehead protector behind his head, after he slung the straps of his father's precious tanto over his shoulders.

The prodigy stepped closer to the window and forced it open. With haste Kakashi jumped out of the window and left his hospital room unoccupied.

Kakashi entered his abandoned private training halls which had gathered dust over the past few years. He locked the wooden door behind him and glanced around at the equipment which were neatly tucked in their shelves, casing and posts. For a while he indulged in the nostalgic feeling welling up in his heart.

After Sakumo's death Kakashi refused to visit the compound again. He treated it as a place that was taboo within the walls of the village. He never darted his gaze to the street that led to his compound nor did he even feel compelled to visit, to make sure he maintained its condition. To him, his home died along with his father.

After Pain had ruined the village, however, Kakashi visited it at once and found nothing but a pile of rubble. A rueful feeling had been etched into his heart ever since. He should have preserved the last strand of memory he had of his father, but it was too late then. It wasn't too late now - he could start again, live in the compound again... _maybe_.

Softly, Kakashi strapped on two leg weights around his ankles which rivaled the weight of Lee's. If he had been in his original form the leg weights wouldn't have been such a burden. But in his current form he found the weights to be a hindrance to his performance. He was supposed to be a shinobi, a ninja accustomed to pain, rigorous training and circumstances. A few weights shouldn't have bothered him.

But it did.

His body was still a boy. It felt far too delicate to undergo the practice he had initially planned for himself in the hospital. It didn't matter how refined his mind has become, his body was simply not willing.

Kakashi summoned forth his shadow clones - twenty of them - before he prepped the kunais and shurikens in place on top of the training hall. Inhaling lightly, his onyx eyes snapped open with a glare at his shadow clones who stood adjacent from his position.

"Two minutes," he whispered to himself. "I must finish them in two minutes."

At the get-go the shadow clones rummaged towards Kakashi, and the kunai and shuriken traps from above triggered.

Pandemonium blazed forth in a chaotic manner.

Quickly, Kakashi surged his feet with an unbelievable amount of chakra to burst his way towards the clones, saber intact. He dodged the first of projectiles from above before he slashed through the first shadow clone. With such lithe movement Kakashi managed to duck from the kick of his shadow clone with just enough momentum to bury his fist into its stomach, unintentionally landing a fatal blow which hurled the clone back to another two.

Five kunais shot again; another ten shurikens projected.

In a rhythm: the first kunai was smoothly caught and used to deflect to other incoming weapons. A clone lunged itself on him, a futile attempt to restrain him. Kakashi kicked the shadow clone down onto the ground before he catapulted his tanto, that was surged with electricity, towards the next clone.

Another set of weapons fired. His glance turned into a hardened glare.

Five clones had already circled around him, and fifteen kunais and shurikens were set of above him. Suddenly, Kakashi's eyes widened and his Sharingan spiraled forth, settling into the three tomoe stage. The red pool pulsed and the hue gleamed through the shadowed seclusion. Everything became more vibrant. The mundane colors grew stronger, more prominent. Even the tiny tendrils of chakra that were emitted out of his clones' systems were detectable.

His vision was clearer. Crisper. Sharper. _Deadlier._

The first clone attacked. The set of projectiles came closer.

Kakashi swerved sideways from the punch before he managed to grab a hold of its wrist. At the given second, Kakashi hurled his clone to the air to act as a shield against the shuriken and kunai. He then grabbed the next closest clone by its face, slamming it down into the floorboards. The surface caved slightly as the wood splintered against the raw impact, catching the masked-boy off-guard momentarily.

He didn't anticipate for his attack to be so strong, so _brutal_. A torrent of untamed power just released from his muscles by its own accord.

Within his peripheral range Kakashi saw one last weapon shot sharply at him. With the power of the Sharingan he felt as if time slowed down, granting him enough time to evaluate his overall surrounding - to create a destructive counterattack. He caught the kunai, twirled it in his index finger, and then palmed it into the next clone's abdomen. Streaks of lightning shone from within until the edge of the blade pierced clean through flesh and bones.

Instant kill.

The clones retreated to a defensive stance: the circular formation. With a small huff, the prodigy's legs changed gears as he ran towards the remaining clones. He evaded the kunais with ease, twisting in mid-air before landing in the middle of their circle of defense. Darkened eyes gleamed and with a silver slash all of the shadow clones disappeared with puffs of smoke.

"Damn it!" Kakashi scowled.

His sharp vision was rendered obsolete due to the white shroud left by the clones. He closed his eyes and relied on his hearing instead. Thirty projectiles in total had just been released.

Kakashi on rolled the floor and dodged the first wave. Hurriedly, he grabbed a hold of his tanto from the ground to use it to slash away the incoming weapons. He gritted his teeth, maneuvered backwards and threw his saber at the flying projectiles.

Kakashi leaped back to space himself out and summoned forth his infamous Raikiri on his hand. Sharp cackling burst forth, shredding a more vibrant blue shade on his palm. The electricity sizzled, growing more ferocious by the second. To the extent that the chirping of a thousand birds became roars in the wind.

Kakashi lunged upwards, meeting the remaining projectiles head on. His scarlet pair pulsed, swirled, reddened.

Within milliseconds, he stretched his limb out.

And it was over.

There was a chaotic clash between metal and electricity. Followed by deadly silence. Kakashi softly landed on the surface with his jutsu dying on his hand. He wiped the sweat tracing its way down on his forehead as he heaved heavily. The tomoes rotated with languor until the blackness of his eyes were what remained.

He clicked his tongue irritably as he clenched his fists tightly. That wasn't good enough. His movements were too careless. The battle took four minutes to be completed. An appalling result.

He needed more speed. More strength.

Irritably, Kakashi spun out another kunai from his pouch. "One more time!"

_**~O~O~**_

He couldn't remember the last time it was this difficult to breathe. Every inhalation took a little more effort than the last. He had grown weary from the training regime he underwent that night. To the extent that his body had collapsed from fatigue. At first Kakashi counted the seconds that had passed to fill his void. But it all transpired into minutes and hours.

It had been two hours forty-three minutes and eleven seconds, since he was sent to the ground. And he hasn't tried to get up ever since.

Tentatively, he drew within himself and checked his chakra levels: low, but slowly rising. Kakashi chuckled to himself, he really had outdone himself this time. Up until now he was still doused with fatigue.

After inhaling lightly, Kakashi flexed out his arms and legs as he uncoiled his fingers and toes. Through time and patience to rehabilitate, his vexed muscles had started to lax, as the fine wrinkles marring his pale brow disappeared.

He rose back onto his feet to lean onto the nearest wooden post, stumbling back lightly. What mess has he gotten himself into? Reverting back into the past, saving the comrades he already knew was supposed to be dead. Of course he wanted to save them! He wanted to but...

...Obito was a better option than he was.

A susurrus encroached in his wake of dilemma and regrets. The village was coming to life. He clicked his tongue before he moistened his chapped lips. Hastily, he tightened the knot of his forehead protector and pulled up his mask by its hem as he sauntered out of the training hall.

There wasn't time to wallow in petty regrets. He was already here. Obito has already sacrificed himself - and his power - for this moment. He can't afford to waste this opportunity. Drifting into space to question his caliber as a ninja would be betraying his promise to Obito.

He has already failed him once. His eyes narrowed, never again.

Kakashi pushed the door open, pausing mid-step. He had _just_ remembered, he didn't return to the hospital in time.

"Tsunade-sama is going to _kill_ me."

_**~O~O~**_

"That kid better prepare for his funeral. Because when I get my hands on him, he won't be able to see the light of day again!" Tsunade snarled.

Dan decided to stay awfully quiet for the time being. Seeing that he couldn't calm her nerves, he didn't see the point in trying. As of right now, he felt as if he was as treading on thin shards of broken glass. He stared at her, quiet and unblinking, irises abysmal and umbrous, merged with his pupils, until the gold of her eyes gone dark, like heated metal.

"I'll tell you one thing," the blonde Senju Princess finally took a breather. The first one ever since Kakashi's reported disappearance. "When we have a child we're going to discipline them, and not let them do whatever they please."

"A child?" he flatly parroted. "Us?"

Tsunade grimaced secretly at her poorly chosen words. "Well," she turned on her heels to the door. "Shall we go back to the reception and see if Kakashi's there?"

Dan's face fell at the realization that she was, indeed, dodging his question.

"Wait until I get my hands on him," Tsunade darkly grinned, fist clenched hard. "That brat has done it now."

"If anything, Tsunade-sama, I'd like you to excuse my student just this once." A timid voice echoed through the room, followed by a gentle chuckle.

The older male Jōnin already had his kunai in his clasp, ready to charge at the given moment. It wasn't until he recognized the sunkiss hair flowing in time with the breeze that his stance eased. "Honestly," he sighed, withdrawing his weapon back into his pouch. "Doors are invented for a reason, Minato."

"I'm sorry, Dan-sama. I've gotten quite accustomed to slipping through opened windows."

"Clearly," Tsunade snorted. "But using the door once a while won't kill anybody."

Minato sheepishly ran his fingers through the strands of his hair, chuckling awkwardly in the presence of his superiors. "I'll keep that in mind, Tsunade-sama."

Dan walked closer to his fellow Jōnin and matched his smile. "So, what brings you by?"

"I've been asked to summon the both of you," he responded, clear blue eyes shadowing slightly. "Jiraiya-sama and Orochimaru-san are already in the Hokage's quarters."

Dan wore a look of concern. He glanced over his shoulder and shared one small eye contact with his lover before he nodded slightly. "I'll go ahead. I'll see there, Tsunade."

The long-haired Jōnin vanished within a second, leaving not even a smallest whiff of chakra to be sensed.

"Have you heard from your fellow student?" Tsunade asked, darting her eyes at the blond. "He escaped last night and hasn't still returned."

Minato shook his head. "If I did, I would have returned him to bed. Isn't Kakashi allowed to be dismissed out of the hospital by now?"

"Not without my approval." Tsunade sternly replied.

"Have you checked the Hatake compound?" Minato suggested finally.

"I doubt Kakashi would go there. After what happened to Sakumo, Kakashi has never visited his home again."

Minato agreed with a small murmur as he cupped his chin. "I think-"

"Tsunade-sama!"

One of the medical ninjas Tsunade had dispatched frantically ran in the room. "I found Kakashi!"

"Where?!"

"He's visiting Sakumo's grave."

_**~O~O~**_

Kakashi stared at the tombstone which marked the grave of the man he has most often called the White Fang, and far less often…_father_. But it wasn't always been so. _When did I stop calling him father?_ The obfuscous membrane that coats his memory enshrouds the _when_ but not the _why_. Kakshi could never forget that. _After he committed suicide_. Shame saturated on the flesh of his tongue, sizzles and suppurates, old-festered wounds and septic shock. Children are so facilely, so pathetically impressionable, and that is why he despises the child he has once been.

"Father," Kakashi said finally, tracing his engraved name with a trembling fingertip. The carved in kanji was crooked under the pad of his finger due to it being weathered by rain and wind.

Matured Sharingan manifested in his eyes as he wearily stared at his father's grave, fingertip slowly slipping out of the last engraved letter. He leaned his forehead against the cold tombstone. "I wish I could have traveled back three years farther more."

_So I could also save you from your demise..._

The grim memory was well engraved into his mind. From the scarlet liquid pooling on the wooden floorboards, to the lifeless corpse sprawled on the floor with a sharp-edged knife protruding through flesh.

Kakashi was nearly six when he first saw a corpse near at his feet - it was his father's. He stared in horror at the blade which was jagged out from his back which broke through tissue, muscles, bones and skin. A pool of blood spewed all over the wooden floor and hugged his bare feet, coldly.

He stared with teary eyes. Sakumo had been long gone by the time he saw him - no vestige of life present.

He wished he could overwrite that memory and rewrite it with another. But, as reality commanded, he must walk this journey alone. Completely and helplessly alone for the sake of the Shinobi World. He was not ignorant to the ideals of sacrifice without honor; he served in the ANBU for a decade, he abode that mantra through his service in the dark.

What made an ANBU shinobi complete was mentality - to discard all sense of self, to smother the merest scintilla of individuality. For the sake for the village, the future. They would follow the objective to each letter and execute it like so. It was an unspoken rule of Shinobi, especially in the ANBU.

What distinguished an elite from the mask-wearing, nameless mass was the juxtaposition of being part of the whole yet separate. To possess the rare quality of having all the answers, performing the task assigned in perfection while being cognizant of motives, catalysts, and consequences. Ignorance, blind devotion, was for foot soldiers or, as Kakashi reckoned, the fortunate amongst them.

Like his porcelain masked counterpart, Kakashi planned on taking on the burden of the Shinobi Nation to pave way for a brighter future. Where waging wars would be non-existent. Where peace will remain prominent through generations. Where there will be Rin Nohara and Obito Uchiha.

"Baka-Kakashi,"

The masked ninja cursed inwardly at the presence of his fellow comrade standing several feet away from him. He didn't notice how deep he had submerged himself in his train of thought, until then. Discretely his red eyes retracted back to stone black, and he dried the few tears away.

"What is it?" he questioned, turning around with a forced smile.

Obito sauntered towards him and offered his hand out.

Kakashi stared. The Black Sheep of the Uchiha clan stared back.

The wind blew over the two, but neither decided to move.

"Stare all you like. I'll keep holding my hand out until you take it, _baka_."

His mask shifted, he was smiling. Slowly he reached out and grabbed a hold of Obito's hand. The Uchiha boy became startled at his bandaged hands which had speckles of blood seeping through the cloth. He remained quiet.

"I guess I do need your help, after all." Kakashi spoke cryptically.

"Wh-What?" Obito stared blankly. "Do you have pins and needles in your foot, or something?"

Kakashi laughed, and left it at that. "Where are we going?"

"Oh! Minato-sensei said he wants us to meet him and Rin on the rooftop._ Remember?_"

"For what again?" Kakashi inquired keenly.

Well, fuc-_fudge_. By the looks of it, lazing around for the past ten years, and purposely missing the time in rendezvous points has really taken a toll on him. He needed to get his problems together. He has already aroused suspicion among his superiors, because he couldn't keep up his façade.

Not that he could be blamed - the last time he saw them, they were dead! So, being a smiling goofball is nothing but being said, he didn't want any more attention being raised because of his tardiness.

"We're off to a mission!" Obito scowled. "Sheesh. Looks like it's not only your hair that's aged, you geezer."

Kakashi shrugged off his insult. He was accustomed to it. Naruto also had a knack for insults, especially during missions. Well, what do you know? Those two _really_ are two peas in a pod. He smiled.

Both young ninjas motioned out of the graveyard in a quiet manner. Kakashi surreptitiously glanced at his teammate who kept his stare fixated up ahead. Maybe he won't be alone in this journey. Maybe in order to save this world, he'll need someone like Obito.

A fallen hero who dreamed of being the savior of this godforsaken world.

* * *

A/N: Alright, about the update that was posted last night - it wasn't a glitch or anything from this site. I did actually update (with a longer chapter as well, 11K!). And I am _terribly_ sorry for deleting it! D:

However, a friend (and reader) of mine actually messaged me saying that the chapter was - in short - horrible.

The quality was writing was okay. But the pacing got too weird. Meaning, it was all over the place. I felt awkward updating yesterday with that chapter, but it was a now or never situation. So, I updated.

The consequence was that I had to delete majority of the chapter (about 7-8K) and go from there. This time I tried to make sure the pacing wasn't all over the place. With very little time I have on my hands, this is the best I can give you guys! I do hope the quality of this chapter was okay! :/

The pacing will definitely become quicker next chapter! This chapter just shadows Kakashi as a person and how he truly feels underneath the mask. Hence "The Shadow of His Smile". Despite the time-travel, Kakashi still harbors his regrets that inevitably shaped him into the character we know.

As always, thank you for all the favorites, follows and reviews! It's so awesome getting them. :D

**Exciled3**


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